Is BHA safe? Where it's allowed, restricted, and what it's in
Where BHA is allowed
United States
Permitted with conditionsFDA permits BHA as a food additive in specified foods with limits in parts per million (for example 50 ppm, combined with BHT, in dry breakfast cereals and potato flakes), and treats it as generally recognized as safe when total antioxidants stay at or below 0.02% of a food's fat or oil content. On 10 February 2026 FDA launched a reassessment of whether BHA is safe in food and as a food contact substance. West Virginia's 2025 law (HB 2354) treats food containing BHA as adulterated from 1 January 2028. For cosmetics, FDA says ingredients other than color additives need no FDA approval, and BHA is not on FDA's list of prohibited or restricted cosmetic ingredients. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 19]
Canada
Permitted with conditionsHealth Canada's List of Permitted Preservatives allows BHA in named foods up to set limits, such as 200 ppm in fats and oils (except milk fat, olive oil and suet), lard and shortening, 50 ppm in dried breakfast cereals and dehydrated potato products, and 0.01% of the fat in margarine. BHA is not on Health Canada's Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist. [6, 7]
European Union
RestrictedBHA is authorised as E 320 only in a listed set of foods, such as frying fats, processed nuts, dehydrated potatoes, dehydrated soups and meat, cereal-based snacks and chewing gum, at 25 to 400 mg/kg counted together with propyl gallate and TBHQ (and, in a few categories, BHT). BHA is not named in the restricted-substance lists of the EU cosmetics regulation, but the EU's consumer safety committee (SCCS) concluded in a final opinion adopted 26 March 2026 that BHA is safe in leave-on and rinse-off skin products up to 0.07%; that advice covers skin products only, not oral-care products or products that could be inhaled. [8, 9, 10]
What is BHA?
BHA is a synthetic antioxidant, sold as a mixture of two closely related forms (isomers), and coded E320 in Europe. FDA notes it has been in the food supply for decades, and it is also used in cosmetics. In skincare, 'BHA' usually means something different: FDA says the beta hydroxy acid most commonly used in cosmetics is salicylic acid.
Why it's used, and where you'll find it
Oils and fats turn rancid when they react with oxygen. BHA slows that reaction, so cereals, potato products and cooking fats keep their flavour longer. It often works alongside BHT, and the US rules count the two against one combined limit.
What the research and regulators say
The cancer classifications
IARC's classification list places BHA in Group 2B, 'possibly carcinogenic to humans' (last evaluated in 1987), and the US National Toxicology Program lists it as 'reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.' The NTP listing rests on animal studies in which BHA in the diet caused forestomach tumours in rats, mice and hamsters; the NTP found the human data inadequate to evaluate. The EU's SCCS noted that humans have no tissue equivalent to the rodent forestomach, which makes those findings hard to extrapolate to people, and EFSA said forestomach hyperplasia in rodents may no longer be relevant for human risk assessment. [9, 11, 12, 13]
Daily intake guidelines
In 2011 EFSA raised its acceptable daily intake for BHA from 0.5 to 1.0 mg per kg of body weight, based on effects in rat pups at higher doses, and said refined intake estimates were generally below it. A 2012 EFSA follow-up found that exposure from food-additive use did not exceed 1 mg/kg at the mean and generally not for adults at high intakes, but that combined exposure from food additive use and food-contact materials, under its assumptions, would exceed it for most population groups. JECFA's older guideline, set in 1988, is 0 to 0.5. [13, 14, 15]
Hormone-related questions
In its 2026 advice the SCCS described weak anti-estrogenic activity in lab tests and some sperm effects in lower-quality animal studies, but judged the overall evidence not robust enough to clearly suggest an endocrine mode of action. It also said neither type of finding was reliable enough to set a safe-exposure starting point for risk assessment. [9]
California and the FDA review
California's OEHHA lists BHA under Proposition 65 as a chemical known to the state to cause cancer, effective 1 January 1990, on the basis of IARC's classification. Proposition 65 requires businesses to give a clear and reasonable warning before knowingly exposing people to a listed chemical, unless the exposure is low enough to pose no significant risk. FDA's 2026 reassessment cited the NTP classification and long-standing concerns raised by health advocates. [3, 16, 17]
Who might choose to avoid it
The sources cited here do not single out a group who must avoid BHA at permitted levels. Some people avoid it because of the animal-based IARC and NTP classifications, the FDA reassessment, or to limit synthetic additives. Those classifications describe the strength of evidence, not the risk from a typical serving.
How to spot it on a label
Look for BHA, butylated hydroxyanisole or E320. Do not confuse it with beta hydroxy acid, which skincare brands also shorten to BHA. It is often listed alongside BHT.
Check what's in your own productsScan a barcode or a label photo and Label X-Ray flags BHA and everything else in plain English, with your allergies checked automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Is BHA banned in Canada?
No. Health Canada's List of Permitted Preservatives allows BHA in specific foods up to set limits, such as 200 ppm in fats and oils, lard and shortening. It is also not on the Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist.
Is BHA banned in Europe?
No. It is authorised as E 320 for a listed set of foods with maximum levels. It is not named in the EU cosmetics regulation's restricted lists, and in March 2026 the SCCS concluded it is safe in leave-on and rinse-off skin products up to 0.07%.
Is BHA a carcinogen?
IARC classifies BHA as 'possibly carcinogenic to humans' (Group 2B) and the NTP says it is 'reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.' The NTP listing rests on animal studies of forestomach tumours, and the NTP found human data inadequate to evaluate. The SCCS notes humans have no tissue equivalent to the rodent forestomach.
Is BHA banned in California?
Not by Proposition 65. California's OEHHA has listed BHA as known to the state to cause cancer since 1990, which sets warning and drinking-water discharge rules for businesses rather than banning it from food, and BHA remains permitted under FDA's food rules. State food laws are changing (West Virginia, for example, will treat food containing BHA as adulterated from 2028), so check current law.
Is BHA the same as salicylic acid?
No. The food and cosmetic preservative BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) is a different chemical. Skincare marketing uses 'BHA' for beta hydroxy acid, and FDA says the one most commonly used in cosmetics is salicylic acid, so check the full name on the label.
Is BHA bad for you?
Regulators consider it acceptable at permitted food levels, with EFSA's daily guideline at 1.0 mg per kg of body weight. But FDA opened a reassessment in 2026, IARC and the NTP classify it on animal evidence, and EFSA's 2012 follow-up found intake could exceed the guideline if food-contact sources were added.
Related ingredients
Sources
- U.S. eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) — 21 CFR 172.110 - BHA (accessed 2026-09-19)
- U.S. eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) — 21 CFR 182.3169 - Butylated hydroxyanisole (accessed 2026-09-19)
- U.S. FDA — FDA Launches Assessment of BHA, a Common Food Chemical Preservative (accessed 2026-09-19)
- U.S. FDA — List of Select Chemicals in the Food Supply Under FDA Review (accessed 2026-09-19)
- U.S. FDA — Prohibited & Restricted Ingredients in Cosmetics (accessed 2026-09-19)
- Health Canada — 11. List of Permitted Preservatives (Lists of Permitted Food Additives) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- Health Canada — Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist (accessed 2026-09-19)
- EUR-Lex (European Union) — Consolidated text: Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives (version of 18 August 2026) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- European Commission (SCCS) — Scientific advice on Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA) as a substance with potential endocrine disrupting properties in cosmetic products (SCCS/1682/25, final version) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- EUR-Lex (European Union) — Consolidated text: Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (version of 18 May 2026) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- IARC — IARC Monographs: List of Classifications (data dated 23 July 2026) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- NCBI Bookshelf (NTP) — Butylated Hydroxyanisole - 15th Report on Carcinogens (accessed 2026-09-19)
- EFSA — Scientific Opinion on the re-evaluation of butylated hydroxyanisole - BHA (E 320) as a food additive (accessed 2026-09-19)
- EFSA (via PubMed Central) — Statement on the safety assessment of the exposure to butylated hydroxyanisole E 320 (BHA) by applying a new exposure assessment methodology (accessed 2026-09-19)
- WHO/FAO JECFA — butylated hydroxyanisole (JECFA database) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- California OEHHA — Butylated Hydroxyanisole (Proposition 65 chemical listing) (accessed 2026-09-19)
- California OEHHA — Proposition 65 in Plain Language (accessed 2026-09-19)
- U.S. FDA — Beta Hydroxy Acids (accessed 2026-09-19)
- West Virginia Legislature — House Bill 2354 (2025 Regular Session), Enrolled Committee Substitute (accessed 2026-09-19)
This page summarizes what regulators and published research say, as of the review date above. Rules and evidence change; check the linked sources for the latest. It is general information, not medical advice — talk to a doctor or pharmacist about your own health.